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- Oct 11, 2006
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We bought our house in 2005. It had been surveyed when it was built, in 1978. The fence was already there. We have a very narrow backyard. We have done nothing to change the footprint of the fence.
Two weeks ago, many of the residents on my street got a letter from the HOA saying that they used drones to survey our properties, and that our fences, sheds, etc. encroach upon the common area, which is owned by the HOA (ours may be owned by PECO, the electric company) and we have 30 days in order to remove the structures. They will not provide the survey results of my property to me so I can compare them to the ones I received when I bought the house. If we don't comply within 30 days, we will be billed $150 for legal fees. Some neighbors say that it will be this every month until you comply ; now I'm hearing the $150 was 15 months of $10 per month, retroactively to when they re-surveyed, then $10 a month after. One neighbor, who is a professional surveyor, put in stakes for my next door neighbor. DH looked at the stake and said that the new property line would cut the narrow backyard in half. This would run from the railing of our deck, almost right up to our back door (which are French doors, mostly glass). I'd have no privacy. People can have parties, play sports, etc. in the common area, and be able to come up within about 3 feet of my house! And I practically live in this room. It's where my pc and office are. It's my jewelry studio. I work from home several days, too. The cats love to look out those doors, and any activity would scare them. I'd have to remove mature plants, such as my climbing rose bushes, and we'd have to get rid of the shed, which is inside of the fence.
The HOA says it's because of insurance issues. They are not really answering questions. I've emailed them twice, and only got the response above (and that was to ask the lawyer to email me the letter. However, it seems that the President of the HOA has enough time to drive down our street and yell at the residents. She's so worried about her image on Facebook. She has her adult daughter on FB, begging us not to engage in personal attacks on her mom. I haven't seen any of those (I started the thread and follow it). If anything, her daughter said we live like pigs (I've seen NO evidence of that in my 498 house neighborhood, EVER). We all keep at least our front yards tidy and clean. Her mom has been photographing our yards, too.
This has been stressful for DH and I! I was very sick for 2 weeks, now this.
Two weeks ago, many of the residents on my street got a letter from the HOA saying that they used drones to survey our properties, and that our fences, sheds, etc. encroach upon the common area, which is owned by the HOA (ours may be owned by PECO, the electric company) and we have 30 days in order to remove the structures. They will not provide the survey results of my property to me so I can compare them to the ones I received when I bought the house. If we don't comply within 30 days, we will be billed $150 for legal fees. Some neighbors say that it will be this every month until you comply ; now I'm hearing the $150 was 15 months of $10 per month, retroactively to when they re-surveyed, then $10 a month after. One neighbor, who is a professional surveyor, put in stakes for my next door neighbor. DH looked at the stake and said that the new property line would cut the narrow backyard in half. This would run from the railing of our deck, almost right up to our back door (which are French doors, mostly glass). I'd have no privacy. People can have parties, play sports, etc. in the common area, and be able to come up within about 3 feet of my house! And I practically live in this room. It's where my pc and office are. It's my jewelry studio. I work from home several days, too. The cats love to look out those doors, and any activity would scare them. I'd have to remove mature plants, such as my climbing rose bushes, and we'd have to get rid of the shed, which is inside of the fence.
The HOA says it's because of insurance issues. They are not really answering questions. I've emailed them twice, and only got the response above (and that was to ask the lawyer to email me the letter. However, it seems that the President of the HOA has enough time to drive down our street and yell at the residents. She's so worried about her image on Facebook. She has her adult daughter on FB, begging us not to engage in personal attacks on her mom. I haven't seen any of those (I started the thread and follow it). If anything, her daughter said we live like pigs (I've seen NO evidence of that in my 498 house neighborhood, EVER). We all keep at least our front yards tidy and clean. Her mom has been photographing our yards, too.
This has been stressful for DH and I! I was very sick for 2 weeks, now this.